City of Marietta Street Department worker Ken Thomason cuts branches from a large tree out of the roadway Sunday at the intersection of Whitlock and N. Woodland drives after lightning, winds and rain pelted the area.

With rain and stormy weather blanketing the metro area Sunday, numerous reports of downed trees and power lines came in throughout Cobb County, as well as reports of three house fires in the southwest Cobb area that apparently resulted from lightning strikes during the strong but short-lived thunderstorm.

“All three working fires we had appeared to be due to lightning,” Cobb County Fire Department spokesman Lt. Dan Dupree said.

No injuries were reported in any of the fires, he said.

At about noon, a mother and her children were at their Brownwood Drive home in Powder Springs when a neighbor notified them the home was on fire and smoke was coming from the roof, Dupree said.

Dupree said the two-story home had flames coming through the roof when units arrived and that the attic area and a room were damaged.

“The fire was contained to the attic and bonus room area, but the house sustained heavy smoke damage throughout,” Dupree said.

Dupree said two fire engines and a battalion chief responded to the scene and were assisted by the Austell Fire Department, as several units with Cobb Fire already were working two other fires in the area.

Five fire engines, a ladder truck, a rescue truck and a battalion chief were dispatched to a Danbury Court home in Powder Springs at about 11:38 a.m. to a basement fire, which Dupree said took firefighters about 20 minutes to get under control.

“Lightning struck the chimney and traveled into a gas line in the basement,” he said.

One person reportedly lived at the residence, but no injuries were reported.

At about the same time, units also were sent to a home on Split Wood Way in the Country Walk subdivision in Powder Springs. Dupree said no injuries were reported and the house fire was under control in three minutes.

Dupree said his department received about 30 calls for trees and wires down in the Powder Springs and west Cobb areas.

One tree fell across Whitlock Drive and South Woodland Drive just south of Whitlock Avenue near Marietta City Club. Drivers were asked by Marietta Police to avoid the area for about an hour.

Cobb County police worked to remove downed trees in the west Cobb area, including one on Shipp Road, a second on Macland Road at Macland Circle and a third on Florence and Old Gaydon roads. Mike Bowman, spokesman for Cobb Police, said no damage or road closures were reported.

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